An interview with World Geography teacher Ms.Giesenschlag about what she does in her free time.

What are some things that people may not know about you?
My friends and family are the most important thing in my life and I spend almost all of my school holidays surrounded by the people I love. I love visiting new places and save up all year so I can spend my summers traveling! I also really enjoy reading and cooking. The most relaxing thing for me to do is test out new recipes on a Sunday afternoon while enjoying some football on the TV!

What made you want to teach geography?
My first semester in college at Texas State University, I enrolled in World Geography and it was the most interesting class I ever took. Unlike each of you, I did not take geography in high school and had no clue what I was missing out on! My family encouraged me to major in geography, but I decided to try out finance instead. And then I took accounting and realized I was not studying something I enjoyed or wanted to do as a career. So my senior year I switched my major to geography and have been happy ever since! I love geography so much that I wanted to share my love for geography with as many people as possible and teaching seemed like the perfect way to do that!

What is your favorite part about being a teacher at Vandegrift?
I really love the sense of community and pride everyone takes in our school, but my favorite part is the relationships I build with my students. The spring is the busiest and best part of the year for me because this is when I see all the hard work my students have put in all year really pay off.

 What should students expect for the year? Geography is a challenging course and a common misconception students have is that being “good in social studies” in middle school means that geography will come naturally to you. Geography is concept based and requires those who study geography to apply the skills and terms we learn in class to real-world situations. The amount of time you spend studying is not as important as how you study. At the beginning of the school year, we will be building reading comprehension and note-taking skills in class so the adjustment to high school will be as smooth as possible. The course can be challenging but the most important thing to remember is if you are confused or need help, ask your teacher! I will drop whatever I am doing to help you and want each and everyone one of my students to succeed and enjoy studying geography!

What is one fun fact about yourself?
I have completed three half marathons in the past two years